Mt. Hood Snow Forecast
Saturday will start out clear on the mountain, but overcast sky will quickly appear, causing flurries to fall on the slopes. The snow level will be at sea level today, all day. Less than one inch of snow. Wind today will be NE 15 in the morning and NW 20-25 in the afternoon, dropping off to NW 15 overnight. Continued after the chart…
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4a-8a | 8a-12p | 12p-4p | 4p-8p | 8p-4a |
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| Saturday 0′ |
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| Sunday 0′->500′ |
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| Monday 0′->7000′ |
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Mt. Hood Snow Forecast, continued…
Sunday looks partly cloudy to start with clouds, flurries, and sunbreaks in the afternoon. The snow level will be at sea level in the morning and 500′ or so in the afternoon. Wind on Sunday will be N 15 early, slowly swinging around to SW 10 in the evening and ramping up to WSW 50 overnight.
Monday and Tuesday look super interesting and exciting… if you’re a weather forecaster. Both days look pretty hellish if you’re a lift maintenance person or someone hoping for some turns on the mountain. Let’s take this one piece at a time.
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Mt. Hood Snow Forecast, finished
The snow level Monday morning will start out at sea level (in the Gorge) and 1500′ elsewhere. We’ll quickly see temps climb to 30-32 degrees all the way up to 8000′. As the system moves through, the snow level will settle out around 5500′ before falling briefly to 4500′ in the evening and rising to 7000′ overnight. We’ll see 1-1.5” water value (WV) between 4am Monday and 4pm Monday. That’s going to fall as a mix of snow, sleet, possibly rain, and then wet snow. I can’t tell you how many inches of what will fall. We’ll see another 2-3” WV (yes, two to three inches) between 4pm and 4am, most of which will fall as rain. Why so much precip? Wet system, orographic (wind and terrain driven effects) assistance: Wind will be W 55-60 through mid-afternoon (slowing or shutting down lifts), W 35 after 2pm, WSW 25 in the evening, and WSW 55+ after midnight.
Tuesday starts off with rain and nuking wind, quickly switching to snow with nuking wind. The snow level will be 6500′ early, dropping to 2000′ after 10am. Tuesday’s models are disagreeing over precipitation, but I suspect we’ll see around 1-1.5” WV between 4am and 4pm due to orographic effects. That should give us 10-14” of new. Wind will be W 60 for much of the day, likely shutting down lifts.
Wednesday currently looks dry during the day with another strong system moving in overnight for another round of heavy, dense snow.
Hood River Soaring
Glider rides for holiday gifts!
Give a gift certificate this winter to enjoy a scenic glider ride next spring and introduce a friend or family member to the thrill of soaring. Experience a grand view of the snow capped mountains, river valleys, verdant orchards and countryside that make the Hood River valley a truly unique and breathtaking place to fly. Your purchase supports Hood River Soaring’s goal to help young people discover their potential by learning to fly.
Gorge Wind Forecast
East wind at 15-20 at Rooster this morning turns around to W wind at 10-13 this afternoon. Maybe. Sunday looks light and variable. Monday starts off light and variable and turns westerly at 20-23 midday before turning easterly again on Monday night. Tuesday looks like west wind at 40-50+. No, seriously, I’ve never seen gradients this strong on the GFS. Be prepared for chaos!
Jones, Sauvie’s, Coast Beta Test Forecast
If you click right here , you’ll find NOAA’s coast forecast.
Random Morning Thoughts
It’s a very chilly morning here in Hood River, just 18 degrees when I checked a few minutes ago. That’s warmer than last night’s forecast of 5 degrees (too many clouds), but still very cold. Looking out my window, I’m wondering how I can get some exercise today. I am, after all, the Gorge is my Gym person, and I’m supposed to find a way to make this work.
Sure, I could go sledding on 7th Street, or I could snowshoe Post Canyon or XC ski the Twin Tunnels. All of these are possibilities. Or I could let go of my insistence on using the Gorge as my gym and head over to the Power Station where it’s warm and cozy and sweating won’t lead to hypothermia.
Sometimes I cling to the idea that I have to use the Gorge as my gym. I’m sure you have things you cling to in the same way. You’ve convinced yourself that you “must” “should” or “have to” be a certain way or do a certain thing.
I encourage you to look at these things and contemplate creating a little more space around them. What if you allowed yourself more options in your life? What if you could try something out of the box? What if there was another way besides the way you always do that thing you do? Grab yourself a cup of hot cocoa, look at the snow, and reflect upon this while you wait for the temps to warm up. Have an awesome day.
Disclaimer required by my grad school program: I am not your therapist (but I could be 51 graduate school credits from now). I am your weather forecaster. Take everything I say with a grain of salt, and consult with your actual therapist about your mental health issues. One other thing: I plan to keep doing this forecast indefinitely, even when I am a therapist.
Gorge Weather Forecast
I’m refusing to go outside and check the sky coverage because Hood River Weather says it’s 22 degrees out. If it’s 22 and not 2, it must be at least partly cloudy. Expect more clouds today with a few snowflakes possible. Temps will be in the low to mid 20’s all day. Light east wind in the morning. Light west wind in the afternoon if you believe the models. I’m not sure I do. No rainbows. Sunday looks cloudy with a couple of snowflakes possible. Temps will be in the upper teens early and the low 30’s in the afternoon. Light and variable wind turns light easterly after 4pm. No rainbows. Things get very interesting on Monday morning as a strong cold front moves in. It seems we’ll start off with snow, switch quickly to sleet and freezing rain, and then climb above freezing by midday. I think. Models suck at predicting the rise above freezing. 99% chance of rainbows on Monday and Tuesday. Tuesday looks very, very wet.
For weather specifically directed at travel through the Gorge, please visit Temira’s Awesome Travel Advisory Service on Facebook.
White Sprinter Van of the Day
Road and Mountain Biking
You can ride your bike if you have a fat bike. =)
Upcoming Events
It’s Saturday. There’s a free Spanish language yoga class at Flow at 7am, and there’s (unless it’s canceled) a trail run at 8am in Post Canyon. Big Winds has a Locals Only sale today from 10am to 5pm with 40% off all 2016 gear in the store. Dirty Fingers has the Cold Lap ride at 3pm today, unless it’s canceled due to icy conditions, in which case they’ll have the Cold Beers instead.
Have an awesome day today!
Temira
